To Have and to Hold
by Tomocopter
Summary: Two years after the events of the movie, Danny and Sawyer are preparing for the biggest day of their lives. This is a follow-up to Aeternum.
1. May 1st 1941

'So, how do you feel about cranberry?'

Sawyer glanced at Tillie, really not sure about where this topic was going. Well, after the previous months she did have a fair idea, but for once she hoped that it somehow had nothing to do with her upcoming nuptials.

'The fruit? No strong feelings either way.'

Tillie giggled, 'Not the fruit sweetie, the colour! My cousin had it as the theme at her wedding a couple of years ago, and it was just lovely! She had a cranberry sash, the bridesmaids wore cranberry dresses, the groom wore a cranberry tuxedo...'

'I really can't see Danny wearing-'

'And she even had cranberries baked into the cake! What do you think?'

Sawyer took in a deep breath, trying to think of the most diplomatic way to resolve the situation. Danny and Sawyer had been engaged for five months, and Tillie had spent that entire time slowly pushing herself into the role of honorary wedding planner. With each passing day Sawyer was beginning to wish she had put a stop to it when she had the chance.

'Listen Tillie, I really do appreciate the thought...I just don't think we're going to be using any kind of theme.'

Tillie looked disappointed, but seemed to pull herself together, 'That's ok, I guess...Well, the most important thing is really the church.'

'I'm an atheist.'

'Well, that doesn't matter! Danny's Catholic!'

'Only technically.'

'Come on, you have to get married in a church! You can't just-'

Sawyer glanced across the crowded Mammoth Studios set to see Danny, gathered around a small table they had managed to procure. She didn't think she had ever been so relieved to see anyone in her life. He reached out to silence Tillie.

'Look, they're doing something important! We should really see what's happening there!' She rushed over, not taking the time to be stopped by Tillie. If she heard another fruit theme being put forward she might have needed to have them both killed.

The pair walked over, to see Danny using family photos to explain the various members of his family they would be interacting with during the wedding.

'This is Josh, Ben's twin. He's the smaller one, so it shouldn't be that hard to tell them apart.'

Sawyer cut in, 'He's also married to Danny's old flame.'

'I was 16 when we broke up! Six years later, it isn't a big deal.'

'Except she still has a huge crush on him.'

'Don't start', Danny pulled out another picture to put an end to the conversation.

'These are my sisters, Kate and Ciara. Kate's my twin sister, and Ciara's eleven, so that one won't be too hard.'

Cranston snorted, 'You're family aren't doing much to end the Irish Catholic stereotype, are they.'

Tillie gave Cranston what she considered to be a soft slap, 'Don't listen to him Danny, I think it's lovely. I actually wanted to have a little chat with you...How do you feel about cranberry?'

* * *

Danny had nearly forgotten how much time he could sink into a movie once given the opportunity. The others had all left hours before, while he had stayed behind with Flanagan to do some lighting checks and get some shots that they might have needed. It also gave him excuse to get away from Tillie while she spoke to Sawyer about the advantages of having a harpist at the wedding instead of an organist. It was one of those moments where Danny was grateful he had been born male.

He was just preparing to leave when he saw LB waiting at the exit, which was unusual enough. Seeing him around after six was a rarity, and seeing him on set was even more unusual.

'You waiting for anyone in particular, sir?'

LB smiled, 'I was actually hoping to run into you.' He paused, lighting his cigar, 'Walk with me?'

Danny saw no reason not to, and soon the two men were making small talk as they explored the studio.'

'Have you two made any grand plans for the wedding?'

Danny laughed, 'No plans sir, grand or not. I'm just hopin' for something simple. Not that that'll ever happen with Tillie; I think she has a seating plan.'

L.B. tried to laugh, but it came out forced, 'That's what I wanted to talk to you about. Do you remember that chat we had right after New Years?'

Danny shifted uncomfortably. The news had broken soon after they had returned from their Christmas vacation, and the media had a field day. Danny and Sawyer had seen it as a funny inevitability; LB saw it as a business opportunity.

'It's not that I don't appreciate the interest Mr. Mammoth, I just don't think either of us want to make this a spectacle.'

'Danny, something like this could really boost your careers! You're both already the hottest couple in Hollywood, just think of this as advertising. I'd pay for everything!'

'I really do appreciate the gesture, but-'

LB cut him off with a pat on the back, 'No need to answer now. Just think about it.'

* * *

'So, have we decided on cranberries?' Danny called in as he walked into Sawyer's apartment. The pair had mostly been living there since the engagement, while they tried to find a place to live. Five months in, and them spending their first months of married life in a hotel seemed more likely every day.

'Tillie decided that Chrysanthemum might be more appropriate considering she's planning on a summer wedding. I'm so happy for her.'

Danny leaned down to kiss her, 'Heh, I was starting to worry about the cranberry tux.'

'Don't get too hopeful, she may get you in it yet.'

He sat down next to her on the couch, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, 'I'm sure my brothers would love that.'

'Not nearly as much as I would. What kept you out so late?'

Danny frowned, reluctant to pass on the story, 'Let's just say I was having a chat with LB.'

Sawyer seemed confused for a moment, when it dawned on her what he meant, 'Please don't tell me he was asking about the wedding again?'

'Got it in one.'

Sawyer sprang up, outrage written all over her face, 'That jerk! I can't believe he'd ask again after the first time; As if we'd let the media get involved! How did you break it to him?'

'Well...I didn't exactly turn him down.'

Sawyer's head shot straight up, and at that moment Danny knew exactly what people meant when they said 'If looks could kill'.

'You _what_?' Sawyer took a deep breath, clearly trying to get her emotions in check, 'Jesus Danny, the last thing either of us want! You'd probably give him the clothes of you back if he asked you nicely!'

Danny was noticeably hurt by that, 'You know I'd never do anything to cheapen our marriage!'

'Then why on earth didn't you tell him no!'

'You're one to talk, you're letting Tillie plan this whole thing when you don't want any of it! If you can't even keep your best friend in check, how can you expect me to handle our boss so perfectly?!'

They both stared at each other for a moment, both more than a bit surprised by the fact that Danny had lost his temper. The stunned silence didn't last long.

'Don't compare the two situations, Tillie's just trying to help! At least she isn't trying to make a quick buck out of it.'

'Come on Sawyer, you and I both know that you've hated everything she's come up with! We're going to be at her dream wedding the way it's going, and we'll both be miserable! How come you can get away with this and I can't?'

Sawyer was surprised she didn't launch herself at him, 'How dare you of all people question my decision making! Don't forget it was your stupid decision that nearly got us all killed two years ago! If you were that quick to trust Darla, what's to stop you from trusting LB?'

Both froze at that, stunned that she had actually come out and said it. In that moment she could have taken it back, but she didn't.

Not daring to look back for fear that his eyes might betray how hurt he really was, Danny stood up and walked out of the apartment.


	2. May 1st-2nd 1941

Danny had to hand it to Sawyer, keeping the leases on both apartments did turn out to be a good idea. Although, not a good idea for the reasons she might have expected.

This was all Danny could think of as he walked into his apartment. Walking in, he had to admit it had seen better days. He only stopped in very occasionally to gather supplies before returning to Sawyer's, and it had been nearly two weeks since his last visit; the signs of neglect were definitely starting to show. It seemed as if everything he owned was covered in a thick layer of dust.

_Still_, he thought to himself as he cleared a place to sit, _better than wandering the streets. Or going back._

He took a number of deep breaths, trying to steady his frayed nerves. He still couldn't believe she had said it. He knew how stressed she was over Tillie taking over the wedding plans, but there was no excuse for what she had said.

He sometimes wondered if she thought he didn't care about what had happened to them all two years ago. Everything had worked out well in the end, but that didn't change the fact that things could have ended so much worse than they did.

Heck, he knew how differently everything could have turned out. If the ark incident had gone any worse they all could have been killed. If he hadn't gotten off the bus after seeing Pudge, he would still be miserable in Kokomo, and so many of the animal actors would have lost everything. He and Sawyer would never have seen each other again.

Danny sighed. The thought of not spending the rest of his life with her was enough to turn his stomach; that didn't mean that he was okay with what she had said. There was a lot wrong with him, but therein lay the biggest difference between the two of them. He could never hurt her like that.

Danny stood up, and walked across to the telephone hanging in the wall. He knew he couldn't stay there isolated like that all night. There must be someone there who would want to talk to him.

* * *

Sawyer knew she had gone to far when he had walked out.

She remembered talking to Danny's twin sister about what he was like as a child. She had told him that they were all fairly argumentative children, except for Danny. She said they always used him as a sort of barometer; if Danny ended up upset or angry they knew they had gone to far. The moment she heard the door slam, Sawyer understood that feeling of childhood dread.

An hour later she found herself pacing up and down her sitting room, waiting for him to return. It was starting to dawn on her that he might not.

_It wasn't like it was all my fault_, she thought._ All he needed to do was stand up to LB and none of this would have happened!_

She loved Danny Kelly with all her heart, but she also knew what he was like. He was idealistic and rash and never thought things through if he could help it. Hell, he would be the first to admit that most of the opportunities he had had in his life came to him thanks to sheer dumb luck. Well, all but her.

She walked over to her window, and tried to look as far as she could down her street to look out for any sign of him. Nothing.

She was pissed over LB's suggestion, and he really should have turned him down straight away. But Sawyer could admit that wasn't the main reason why she was upset.

Tillie had been running her ragged ever since they had gotten engaged. Sawyer had no sisters, and Tillie had been the obvious choice for Maid of Honor, a role she had taken on with great enthusiasm. At first it was sweet; Tillie had always been the kind of girl who had dreamed about her dream wedding, and she was bringing that same enthusiasm to their wedding.

The main issue was that Tillie was planning her own dream wedding, not Sawyer and Danny's. Sawyer had never been much of a girly-girl, and the thought of putting in that amount of time and effort into planning one day was enough to make her sick. Tillie had put so much of herself into the planning, and Sawyer didn't know how to tell her that she was taking over her wedding.

If they were still getting married. Crap.

_I've been such an ass_, Sawyer thought to herself, heart rate starting to pick up. She knew she never should have said that, she knew it the moment it had come out of her mouth. She knew how he was going to react, and she said it just to get a rise out of him. She had hardly been a saint in their relationship, and taking the moral high ground over him wasn't going to get them anywhere. It clearly hadn't.

It wasn't as if she wouldn't go to hell and back to be with him. Hell, even after the whole ark incident she had followed him down to the bus stop. She would never forget how she felt when she thought she had lost him forever; like she had been punched in the gut. She was starting to wonder if she had ever told him that. She couldn't remember ever mentioning it.

She shot a glance at her telephone. If he was anywhere, it would probably be his apartment. Would he even want to hear from her. She thought about that for a moment, before coming up with an answer - probably not.

* * *

After the sixth unanswered call, Danny seriously considered calling Sawyer. They could only let the fight simmer for so long, and sooner or later one of them would have to cave. At that moment, Danny didn't want to be the person who did.

The list of numbers he could call was growing shorter and shorter, and he figured it would be cruel to wake up his family in Kokomo at that time of night.

Well, there was one option. His brothers had a workshop, and sometimes they would stay there late into the night if they were working on a project. He figured it was worth a shot.

It didn't take many rings before he got an answer, 'Hi, you've reached Kelly and Kelly! What do you need?'

The voice was higher than he was expecting. That meant he had reached Josh. Danny winced. It wasn't that he and Josh weren't close; he just tended to talk to Ben when it came to relationship stuff. Due in no small part to the fact that he had slept with the woman who was now Josh's wife. Still, too late to turn back.

'Hey Josh, you got a minute?'

'Danny? Heh, unusual to be hearing from you at this hour. I take it you don't have a carpentry emergency?'

'Not exactly. What's happening on your end?'

'Nothing really, took Sally out to lunch today instead of doing any of my work here, so I'm stuck tryin' to finish everything.'

'Aw, that was sweet of you.'

'Yeah, starting to regret that now...You okay Dan? Your kinda lacking in your usual enthusiasm.'

Danny sighed, 'Sawyer and I had a fight.'

'Really, you too?', Josh asked, a note of surprise in his voice. 'Never heard that from you before. What about?'

Danny took the time to explain the situation to Josh, who, to his credit, gave Danny the time to get out all he wanted to say.

Once Danny had gotten out all he wanted to say, Josh took a moment to consider it. 'That's a tough one. What did you do?'

'What could I do? I just up and walked out.'

'Go straight back.'

Danny was taken aback, and needed to take a moment to make sure he had heard him correctly, 'Go back? After everything that just happened?!'

'Absolutely.' Josh heaved a big sigh, 'Listen Danny, I'm married to a woman who sees me as her second choice.'

'Josh, that's not-'

'Yes it is. You'll always be the one who got away. I'm okay with that. It just means I have to work harder everyday to keep my marriage working.'

'Josh...'

'You, on the other hand', he interrupted, not willing to let Danny interject, 'Have a happy, stable relationship. If you walk out every time you have a fight, you won't. Sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and face the music.'


	3. May 2nd 1941

It had been twenty minutes since his phone call with Josh, and he was still undecided on what he was going to do.

On the one hand, what Josh said did make a lot of sense. If he didn't go back, that would stick. He knew that when he came back would end up saying more in the long run than when he left; that didn't mean he still wasn't hurting.

_How right am I, though_? That was the same thought that had plagued him since he had gotten off the phone. It had been easy to think that it was mostly her fault since he had left. In reality, he knew it wasn't; he should have turned Mr. Mammoth down, and he should never have left. Still, she shouldn't have said what she said.

Before he really knew what he was doing, he had left the apartment and began walking in the general direction of Sawyer's apartment. Admittedly, he still wasn't totally certain that he would be going back there; Still, it was a start.

He had reached Pinky's Diner when he came to the conclusion that he would need to make a decision. Whether or not he had reached a point where he was ready to go home (_Do I get to call it home?_). Taking a moment to take a breath, he stepped into the diner.

* * *

Soon after Sawyer had decided to give up and go to bed, she realised that there was no hope of her getting any sleep that night. She sat up with a sigh, deciding that some coffee might be enough to get her through the rest of the night.

She shot a glance towards the door, before giving up hope and returning to the kitchen. She had tried to call Tillie, but hadn't gotten an answer. Still, Sawyer was the only person who ever called her, and Sawyer still hoped that if she noticed the missed call that she would come around. She always did. Unfortunately, it wouldn't be as wedding-focused an evening as Tillie would hope for. Unless she considered 'Will he still want to marry me?' wedding conversation.

She sat back as she let the water boil. She knew she would be fine if this ended them, at least in the long run. That didn't mean that she wanted it to. She always thought that the point of adulthood was understanding the gulf between what you need and what you want. She just knew that she wanted Danny, even more than she wanted to admit.

_***Knock**_** Knock***

Sawyer shot up at the sound at her door, and looked at her clock. It was one a.m, far too late for normal callers. Still, she had little hope for it being Danny. In fact, the more she thought about it the more she realised it would probably be Tillie, back from her Bridge Club. Sawyer stood up, and went to answer her door.

She pulled open her door, fully prepared to give Tillie the full story. What she didn't expect was to see a certain orange tabby staring at her, two cups of take-out coffee held out as a kind of peace offering.

'Truce?'

* * *

Once Sawyer had her chance to throw her arms around the man who she was starting to suspect she would never see again (and clear up the coffee she had made him spill all over his nicest vest), the two had retired to the sitting room to engage in a capital 'T' Talk.

'What do you think would have happened if you hadn't spoken to Josh?', Sawyer asked, staring down at the dregs of coffee left in her cup. They had managed to have this conversation without it being too painful, but that didn't make it easy.

'I like to think I would have made it back. Might have spent more time being stubborn about it.'

'Can't blame you. Tonight was not my proudest moment.'

The two took a moment to look at each other, and to take in every line and mark on the other's face. It didn't take more than a moment before both had discarded their empty cups and wrapped their arms around the other.

'I never should have-'

'Don't be silly, I was such a-'

'That doesn't make-'

Sawyer leaned in to kiss him hard and fast, putting an end to any further apologies. She pulled back to look at him, a smile playing on her lips.

'Now we just have to think about how we're going to handle this wedding.'

Danny gave a frustrated laugh, 'Don't I know it. I kinda wish there was some way we could skip the entire wedding business and just get to the marriage part without upsetting everyone.'

'I'm not sure how well Tillie would take that.'

'LB might feel duped too.'

Sawyer lay back, trying to block out any further thoughts of this wedding. Still, after a few moments something occurred to her. She turned on her side, to find herself face-to-face with Danny.

'Okay, so if Tillie has her way we'll have at least 300 people at this wedding. How many of those people would you want to actually be there?'

'It's not that I don't want people there...'

'Danny, it's me you're talking to.'

'Maybe 80 of them.'

Sawyer frowned, 'My thoughts exactly. God, it's not like either of us even want it to be a theme. I'd much sooner just head somewhere quiet with the people I wanted and get it all over and done with.'

Danny smiled, 'That sounds pretty perfect to me. You, me, our friends and family and somewhere private. If only, eh?'

As he said it, Danny could see the cogs turning in Sawyer's head, 'Penny for your thought?'

'Who's to say we can't?'

'What do you mean?'

Sawyer stood up, 'Who's to say we can't do it that way. We can have anyone we want there in California in two weeks. We can probably get anywhere we want booked if we just mention our names.'

Danny looked up at her, a smile starting to spread across his face, 'What are you saying?'

'I'm saying that you and I should rent a nice hotel up the coast for a couple of nights. We get a judge up there to marry us, then we can hold everything there. No crowds, no photographers, and nothing which doesn't get run by us.'

Danny beamed, 'We can probably head straight out on honeymoon after it too!'

'And we can afford to put everyone we want there in a room for at least a night. I take it this is a date, Mr. Kelly?'

'That's right!' Danny beamed, and stood up to wrap his arms around Sawyer in a tight embrace. The moment only lasted a moment, when Danny leaned in to whisper something softly into Sawyer's ear.

'This means you have to break it to Tillie.'


	4. May 19th 1941

Danny walked into Sawyer's apartment, only to catch the tail-end of a conversation which he could only guess was between Sawyer and Tillie.

'Come on, you have to understand that it isn't anything personal. It isn't like I'm kicking you out of the wedding...Yeah, I understand, but...'

Danny walked over to stand behind Sawyer. He placed his hands on her shoulders to give her what he hoped was a relaxing shoulder massage; judging by the tension he felt he didn't know if it would work.

'Listen, just promise you'll get back to me on this...Yeah, okay. Bye.'

Sawyer slammed down the receiver, as if that would rid her of every ounce of venom in her body at that moment. Her look of defeat made it clear that it didn't work.

Danny leaned down to kiss the top of her head, 'She still not taking it well?'

'Understatement of the decade.'

That wasn't far from the truth. While everyone else had taken their plans for the upcoming nuptials fairly well, Tillie had taken it to heart to an extent that none of them had expected. They had spent the last week walking on eggshells around Tillie, in the hope that she would come around. That was starting to seem unlikely.

Still, it was one of the few dark points on what had been a decent week otherwise. They had booked the hotel, found a judge, and arranged their honeymoon to both of their tastes. Things would have been damn near perfect if it hadn't been for Tillie. Or the fact that both apartment leases would be up by the time they returned from their had tried to convince herself that lots of couples must have spent their first months of marriage living in a hotel.

Danny shook himself back into reality. He grabbed Sawyer's hand and pulled her up, and began leading her towards their door.

Sawyer frowned, not looking too pleased about whatever it was he was planning, 'Aw Danny, I think I'm too miserable to go anywhere right now.'

Danny just smiled, and continued to pull her towards the door, 'Come on, it'll be fun! Besides, I have something important to show you!'

* * *

'Daniel Kelly, where exactly are you sneaking me off to?'

'Stop, don't ruin my surprise!'

In her defense, Sawyer had every right to be curious. They had been driving along the coast, but Danny had since taken off in a totally different direction, and seemed to be driving through every halfway decent suburb in Los Angeles. She wasn't sure how much more of it she could take.

'You searching for inspiration?'

'Not searching. Anyway, you'll be happy to know we have arrived!', he said with a smile, making a quick turn onto one of the properties.

Sawyer struggled to make anything out initially, her view being blocked out by the threes and gate lining the outside of the property. Soon these broke, and both were faced with the building.

Sawyer stared out over the property, taking in everything. Up until that point they had mostly been looking at newer mansions built in the most affluent parts of Los Angeles. A 1920s colonial build was far from what they had discussed. There was more yard than she knew what to do with.

She got out of the car, walking into the house to examine the bottom floor. Oak floors, bright walls and wide open spaces. Totally removed from every home she had ever lived in. She walked along the bottom floor, examining the different living spaces. Behind her, she was dimly aware of Danny, who was providing running commentary to their surroundings.

'...it's a great neighbourhood, it's really safe for celebrities, but our kids could still go to public school and meet normal kids! And the house is pretty open plan, so even though it's a little smaller than the ones we were looking at it feels just as big!'

At some point during his rant, Danny finally realised that Sawyer was nowhere to be seen. He walked through the house, and found her sitting out on the back steps, staring out into the back yard.

Danny walked out to sit beside her, feeling disappointment swell in his chest, 'You don't like it. I knew it wasn't anything like what we were looking for, it was stupid. I don't have a deposit on it, so we can just...'

Sawyer placed a hand on his knee, and turned to silence him with a kiss, 'I love it.'

Danny's eyebrows shot up in surprise, 'Really? I thought...Well, it wasn't like any of the other houses you wanted to look at.'

Sawyer gave his knee a soft squeeze, and stared off into the distance, a small smile playing on her lips. 'I wasn't looking to start anything with any a farm boy from the middle of nowhere. I wasn't planning on getting my career this way. I'm starting to think that plans are total crap.'

* * *

Sawyer felt as if a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. They had gotten into contact with their real estate agent, and according to her they should have the house by the time they were back from honeymoon. Knowing they wouldn't be homeless was quite a feeling.

She was so thrilled about that, she didn't notice where Danny was headed until they pulled up outside an almost painfully cute apartment building. _Oh, you jackass..._

Danny gave her a sheepish smile, trying to ignore the fact that she was likely fit to kill him.

'You do realise I'm going to kill you.'

'It won't be that bad!'

'I can't do this.'

'C'mon Sawyer, you're gonna have to do this eventually. I'll wait here until you're done.'

Sawyer willed herself to leave the car, slamming the door behind her for emphasis._ I can't believe I'm doing this..._

* * *

Sawyer had never seen anyone as shocked in her life as Tillie looked at that moment. She had that feeling again once she pushed passed Tillie and went into her apartment, 'We're gonna have to sort this out.'

Tillie shuffled uncomfortably, trying to avoid making eye contact with Sawyer, 'I didn't think you would want to talk with me...'

Sawyer ran a hand over his face in exasperation, 'Come on Til, you can't hold this against me...'

'Well, clearly you didn't take any of my suggestions very well-'

Sawyer seemed to flare up at that, 'Cut the crap Tillie!'

'Excuse me?!'

'Listen, you know Danny and I both really appreciate everything you've done for us. This, however, is our day. We have every right to do this our own way. I'm not going to keep feeling guilty over this!'

Tillie seemed to droop at this, 'Well, I'm sorry to have been a burden...'

Sawyer headed for the door, 'Til, you know when the wedding is. You know we want you there. The rest is up to you.'


End file.
